The Dallas Cowboys beat the Minnesota Vikings in the Sunday Night Football Game by 20:16, winning their sixth game in a row. Cooper Rush started for the injured Dak Prescott, who threw the decisive touchdown for the lead shortly before the end.
51 seconds before the end of the game, Rush (24/40, 325 YDS, 2 TD, INT) threw a pass from the 5-yard line to Amari Cooper (8 REC, 122 YDS, TD), who was fading on the left side of the field Route ran. Cooper jumped over Cameron Dantzler, who started for the injured Patrick Peterson, and grabbed the ball for the game-winning touchdown. 20:16, without timeouts, the Vikings couldn’t even come close to the opposing end zone on the last drive.
The hosts actually got off to an optimal start: Minnesota marched down the field over 75 yards after the kickoff of the game and went through a pass from Kirk Cousins (23/35, 184 YDS, TD) to a wide open Adam Thielen (6 REC , 78 YDS, TD) in the lead. Afterwards, however, the engine stuttered noticeably. The Vikings only made one more drive than 50 yards.
The cowboys, on the other hand, got the ball moved well at the beginning, but couldn’t reward themselves with points. On the first drive of the guests, kicker Greg Zuerlein (2/3 FG, 2/2 XP) missed a field goal from 43 yards, on the second drive Rush threw an interception into the arms of ex-cowboy Xavier Woods.
The offensive performances of both teams remained tough, even Dalvin Cook (18 ATT, 78 YDS) could not carry the offense. The Vikings scored twice and scored a field goal, the Cowboys also only managed one field goal in the first round, so Minnesota could go into the break with a 10-3 lead.
NFL: Cedrick Wilson equalizes with a long touchdown
In the second round, however, the cowboys’ offense went more smoothly. On the first drive after the break, Rush found Cedrick Wilson (1/1, 35 YDS, 3 REC, 84 YDS, TD) wide open in the middle of the field. Wilson carried the ball over 73 yards into the opposing end zone, equalizer!
Woods even forced another turnover in the second half when he caught Rush in the pocket from behind and thus forced a fumble. The offense of the Vikings could not profit from it. Minnesota barely got the ball moved in the second half. The Vikings came up with three three-and-outs, another punt, two field goals and a turnover on downs.
The Cowboys scored a field goal before marching down the field at 1:16 pm and scoring the game’s decisive touchdown. Amari Cooper recorded several big plays.
The Vikings had to do without Danielle Hunter for much of the game. With the Cowboys, Tyron Smith was absent most of the time. How long the pass rusher and offensive tackle will be out is still unclear.
The Cowboys will face the Denver Broncos at home next week. Minnesota has to play away with the Baltimore Ravens.
Minnesota Vikings (3-4) – Dallas Cowboys (6-1)
Result: 16:20 (7: 0, 3: 3, 3:10, 3: 7) BOXSCORE
Vikings vs. Cowboys – the most important statistics
- Over the first six games, Kirk Cousins had an overall passer rating of 141 in the first quarter – the highest in the NFL! Cousins also made a strong start to the game against the Cowboys: On the hosts’ first drive, Cousins brought three of four passes for 54 yards and a touchdown to the man.
- Cedrick Wilson was allowed to throw a pass in the third quarter and put it on CeeDee Lamb (6 REC, 112 YDS). In his career, Wilson has four out of four passes for 80 yards and a touchdown – a perfect quarterback rating of 158.3!
- Rush’s touchdown pass to Cooper was the first in NFL history where the passer’s first name and receiver’s last name are the same. The only touchdown pass where the surname of the passers and the first name of the receiver are the same is also due to the cowboys: Andy Dalton on Dalton Schultz last season.
The star of the game: the cowboys wide receivers
318 receiving yards and two touchdowns, plus 35 passing yards through Cedrick Wilson’s pass. The offense of the cowboys was carried out by their receiver trio tonight. Lamb repeatedly gave Rush open throws and thus relatively easy completions. Wilson scored the first touchdown with his long catch-and-run, Cooper was in top form on the last drive.
Flop of the Game: Kirk Cousins (Quarterback, Vikings)
Cousins had been one of the positive surprises of the season, but he didn’t have a good day against the Cowboys. The Vikings quarterback remained without a turnover, but – apart from the strong first drive – lacked any aggressiveness. Cousins acted repeatedly in the short passing game and thus did not get the ball constantly moved. He finished the game with just 5.3 yards per pass attempt.
Analysis: Vikings vs. Cowboys – the Tactical Table
- The Vikings targeted the aggressive cornerbacks of the cowboys. Justin Jefferson (2 REC, 21 YDS) ran multiple double moves against Trevon Diggs and Anthony Brown and caught the cornerbacks on the wrong foot in the process, but a long completion with cousins did not jump out.
- Dallas used extra linemen several times, La’el Collins, who did not start as a right tackle on his comeback, was used several times as a fullback. In a play, the cowboys Collins and Connor McGovern used as additional lead blockers in front of Ezekiel Elliott.
- The Vikings had obviously set out to put pressure on Cooper Rush in the pocket. Minnesota flashed almost 40 percent of the plays in the first half and so kept getting pressure – especially through the middle – on the quarterback.
- The cowboys played the line of scrimmage extremely aggressively. Dallas stopped the run well with lots of full boxes, but the Vikings’ running backs weren’t a factor in the passing game either. The linebackers of the cowboys were always there immediately and were not confused by the hosts’ screens.
- Both teams played a so-called double pass, i.e. a pass from a wide receiver. The Cowboys defended the Vikings’ play perfectly, leaving Justin Jefferson with no chance for a completion. Cedrick Wilson made a great pass on CeeDee Lamb a little later.
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